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EID Board Ends Stage 1 Drought Declaration for Entire Service Area
Board also says "No" to State borrowing of local tax revenues
Published on May 27, 2009 - 2:43:50 PM
By: El Dorado Irrigation District
Placerville, CA May 27, 2009 - During a special meeting today, the El Dorado Irrigation District (district) board of directors terminated the stage 1 drought declaration that has been in effect across the district's service area since March 23. The unanimous decision came after discussion of customer response to the drought declaration, the effects of the wet spring, and a decision by the Bureau of Reclamation to allocate 100 percent of the district's municipal contract for water from Folsom Lake.
The board's action means that the stage 1 drought rate that went into effect concurrent with the drought declaration is also lifted. Upcoming customer bills will be calculated under non-drought rates, prorated as necessary.
"Until last Friday, we did not know what the bureau was going to do about our water contract at Folsom," said board president George Wheeldon. "They were proposing a fifty-percent cut in our allocation from the lake when we declared the stage 1 drought in late March. That would have made it difficult for us to get through the year without asking our customers to conserve more than they usually do. Now that the bureau has announced its final allocations for 2009 and because of early May rain and a very strong response by our customers, we're in better shape."
Significantly, from April 1-after the stage 1 drought was declared-through the middle of May, customer demand dropped nearly twenty-six percent from the previous three-year average during the same time period.
"This is very good news," said board vice president John Fraser. "And we encourage our customers to continue their conservation efforts. They'll not only save water, they can save money too. Our new rate structure definitely rewards water conservation."
Fraser was referring to the conservation-oriented rate structure that the board adopted in late March. District staff calculated that single-family residential customers who use 1,800 cubic feet of water every two months will be charged $37.03 under the new structure rather an average of about $45.00 under the old rate schedule. Residential customers who use 3,000 cubic feet every two months, which is about average in the District's service area, will see their bills drop $3 to $6 every two months.
The lifting of the declaration means the district's service area is now at drought management stage "0," which approximates normal conditions. The district encourages customers to take a number of sensible steps during stage 0, as follows.
* Water outside only when necessary.
* Sweep, don't wash, paved areas.
* Repair leaky faucets. Don't dawdle in the shower.
* Wash when your dishwasher and clothes washer are full.
* Don't run water continuously while shaving, brushing teeth, or washing dishes by hand.
* Agricultural customers who do not participate in the district's conservation-minded Irrigation Management Services (IMS) program are encouraged to submit a conservation plan.
Board resolution opposes state borrowing of local property tax revenues
The board unanimously adopted a resolution condemning recommendations to trigger Proposition 1A (from 2004) and thus allow the state to borrow eight percent of local property tax revenues in an effort to close California's budget deficit.
The resolution, introduced by Board president George Wheeldon, draws particular attention to the California Legislative Analyst's Office (LAO) proposal, which would load much of the burden onto water and wastewater districts. The LAO reasons that these districts have more flexibility to cut back on programs or increase their revenues through rate hikes.
"The state is obviously passing a hot potato to local governments and water districts," Wheeldon said. "Legislators were told pretty emphatically by voters just a week ago that new or higher taxes won't wash. So now the LAO recommends that state legislators borrow local property tax revenues and basically tell water agencies to raise their rates. That's nothing more than a not-so-hidden, state-induced tax hike."
The resolution notes that the District has been cutting its budget for more than two years, starting with a 10-percent, across-the-board reduction in the 2008 budget. In September 2008, the District downsized and reorganized its management ranks-eliminating and downgrading 18 positions-to save an additional $1.1 million in the 2008 budget and $1.4 million annually thereafter. Following the Wall Street implosion in September 2008, the District cut an additional $5 million through more reductions in supplies and services, the elimination of 8 vacant positions and 12 full-time equivalent positions through early retirements, a 12.5-percent reduction in Board member income, and the unfortunate layoff of 31 employees.
These actions resulted in a 19-percent reduction in the overall workforce from early 2008 levels and an approximate $6-million (12-percent) cut in the initial 2009 budget, which as finally adopted was nearly $2 million less than the 2007 budget.
"There's no way we can continue to make cuts like these and still provide reliable service to our customers," said board director Harry Norris. "The state will force us to make decisions we shouldn't have to make and all because of their inability to balance their budget."
District staff calculated that every $1 million in lost property tax revenues equates to a three-percent rate hike for water, wastewater, and recycled water services.
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